ETF Versus

VO vs XLK

Vanguard Mid-Cap Index Fund ETF Shares vs State Street Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF

Last updated: 2026-04-02

VO Vanguard

Vanguard Mid-Cap Index Fund ETF Shares (VO) is an exchange-traded fund issued by Vanguard that provides exposure to mid-cap U.S. companies balancing growth potential and stability. It charges a very low expense ratio of 0.03%. The fund offers a moderate dividend yield of 1.50%. Launched in 2004, the fund has a 22-year track record.

AUM: $90.7B ER: 0.03% Yield: 1.50% Since: Jan 26, 2004
XLK

State Street Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLK) is an exchange-traded fund that provides exposure to us sector - technology securities. It charges a low expense ratio of 0.08%. The fund offers a modest dividend yield of 0.57%. Launched in 1998, the fund has a 28-year track record.

AUM: $82.2B ER: 0.08% Yield: 0.57% Since: Dec 16, 1998

Quick Verdict

VO has a slightly lower expense ratio (0.03% vs 0.08%), saving about $99 per $10,000 over 10 years. Over the past year, XLK has significantly outperformed with a 29.7% return vs 11.4%. Income investors may prefer VO for its higher yield (1.5% vs 0.6%).

Key Metrics

Metric VO XLK
Expense Ratio 0.03% 0.08%
Dividend Yield 1.5% 0.6%
Fund Family Vanguard N/A
Category US Mid Cap US Sector - Technology

Performance Chart

Indexed to 100 at start (5-year comparison)

80 108 136 164 192 220 2021-04 2022-06 2023-09 2024-12 2026-04
VO +27.8%
XLK +95.1%

Performance Comparison

Period VO XLK Difference
1 Month -5.54% -3.32% -2.22%
3 Months -1.24% -6.51% +5.27%
6 Months -2.10% -5.23% +3.13%
YTD -1.24% -6.51% +5.27%
1 Year +11.38% +29.73% -18.35%
3 Years +37.24% +78.96% -41.72%
5 Years +27.84% +95.13% -67.29%

Fee Impact Over Time

Estimated fee cost difference assuming 8% annual returns

Investment Period VO Fees XLK Fees You Save
$10.000 10 years $60 $159 $99
$10.000 20 years $258 $686 $427
$10.000 30 years $835 $2.212 $1.377
$50.000 10 years $299 $797 $497
$50.000 30 years $4.176 $11.061 $6.886
$100.000 30 years $8.352 $22.123 $13.771

Risk Metrics

Based on 5 years of daily returns

Metric VO XLK
Annualized Volatility 17.6% 24.7%
Max Drawdown -28.6% -34.0%
Sharpe Ratio 0.11 0.49

Dividend Comparison

Metric VO XLK
Annual Dividend (per share) $4.33 $0.77
Dividend Yield 1.50% 0.57%
Distribution Frequency Quarterly Quarterly

Top Holdings

0 of top 10 holdings overlap (0% overlap in top holdings)

VO Top Holdings

NameWeight
Newmont CorporationNEM1.46%
Corning IncorporatedGLW1.20%
Howmet Aerospace Inc.HWM1.09%
Constellation Energy CorporationCEG1.06%
Vertiv Holdings CoVRT0.99%
Western Digital CorporationWDC0.99%
Seagate Technology Holdings plcSTX0.90%
Quanta Services, Inc.PWR0.87%
Cummins Inc.CMI0.83%
CRH plcCRH0.83%

XLK Top Holdings

NameWeight
NVIDIA CorporationNVDA15.50%
Apple Inc.AAPL13.63%
Microsoft CorporationMSFT10.05%
Broadcom Inc.AVGO5.37%
Micron Technology, Inc.MU3.39%
Palantir Technologies Inc.PLTR2.98%
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc.AMD2.95%
Cisco Systems, Inc.CSCO2.73%
Applied Materials, Inc.AMAT2.42%
Lam Research CorporationLRCX2.38%

Which One Should You Choose?

Choose VO if...

you want the lowest fees and plan to buy and hold long-term. Over decades, the expense ratio difference compounds significantly.

Choose XLK if...

recent performance momentum matters to your strategy. Note that past performance doesn't guarantee future results.

Choose VO if...

you prioritize dividend income and want higher regular distributions from your portfolio.

Related Comparisons